Bob Hanna: 'Money' Mayweather just got a lot richer

Floyd "Money" Mayweather may not be the most popular fighter in the world, but he is the richest. And he just got a little — make that a lot — richer a couple of weeks ago.

BOB HANNA

Floyd "Money" Mayweather may not be the most popular fighter in the world, but he is the richest. And he just got a little — make that a lot — richer a couple of weeks ago.

Mayweather, who had been with HBO since 1997, has signed a six-fight, 30-month pay-per-view deal with Showtime that some reports say could be worth $200 million, which I believe would be the richest individual athlete deal in all of sports.

But that's — the $200 million part — not going to happen, for no other reason than Mayweather hasn't fought six fights within 30 months in a very long time, at least five years.

He's fought three times over the last 3½ years and only four times in the last five. That averages out to slightly more than one fight a year. And at 36 (as of Feb. 24), I don't see him upping his workload at this point in his career.

But even if he fought just four times over the next 2½ years, he reportedly would still get an estimated $120 million.

While no actual figures have been disclosed, reliable sources say that the contract guarantees Mayweather a minimum buy rate for each fight that translates to $30 million per fight. That adds up to a minimum of $180 million for six fights, or $120 million for four fights over 30 months, which happens to be the same amount for which NFL quarterback Joe Flacco just signed in an NFL record six-year deal. Who said boxing is dying?

But wait, there's more.

Sweetening the deal for Mayweather is a clause that puts him in control of not only how many times he fights, but who he fights, complete with a list of acceptable opponents.

That list reportedly includes Robert "The Ghost" Guerrero, who is already signed as Mayweather's first opponent May 4, Danny Garcia, Marcos Maidana, Devon Alexander, Alfredo Angulo, and Saul "Canelo" Alvarez.

No disrespect intended for the rest of the group, but to my mind, the only one on the list who could give Mayweather a competitive fight worthy of a "megafight" tag is Alvarez. That also raises the question of how the rest of that group would draw in a pay-per-view fight.

But that would be of little concern to Mayweather with that guaranteed clause.

This is not to suggest that Mayweather is not that marketable. To the contrary, he's the king of boxing's PPV fights, averaging more than $1 million buys in nine PPV fights, the highest average in ring history. He is already the highest paid athlete in the world, according to Forbes magazine.

But there's a limit as to how much money Mayweather can generate against the likes of Guerrero, Maidana, or Angulo. That may not be of any concern to Mayweather, but it should be for Showtime and its owner, CBS.

In case you haven't heard, the Nevada State Athletic Commission has suspended Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. for nine months and has fined him $900,000, which must be some kind of record, for his testing positive for marijuana after his fight with Sergio Martinez last September.

The suspension is retroactive to September, which means he will be able to return to the ring June 15. The fine is based on 30 percent of his $3 million purse for the Martinez fight. Chavez has appealed, calling the fine "excessive."

Unbeaten super featherweight prospect and former National Golden Gloves champion Toka Kahn-Clary of Providence made it four straight as a pro with a second round TKO over Pablo Cupul (6-11-0) two weeks ago in Hawaiian Gardens, Calif.

"Toka continues to impress people," said his trainer, Peter Manfredo Sr., who has moved his Pawtucket gym to Narragansett, R.I. "A lot of boxing elite came up to me after the fight saying someday he's going to be world champion, and that they were equally impressed by how well he handles himself in and out of the ring."

All four of Kahn-Clary's fights, three of which were knockouts, have come in different states — Nevada, California, New Jersey and Rhode Island.

Associated Press Trainer of the Year (2012) Roberto Garcia added another feather to his cap when his Russian protege Evgeny Gradovich (16-0, 8 KOs) won the IBF featherweight world title Friday night with a split decision over Billy "The Kid" Dib (35-2-0) on ESPN2.

Garcia also trains his younger brother, Mikey Garcia, who won the WBO world featherweight belt in January, and WBO super bantamweight champion and 2012 AP Fighter of the Year Nonito Donaire.

Former "Contender" on the TV series of the same name, Ishe "Sugar Shay" Smith (25-5, 11 KOs), became the first fighter from Floyd Mayweather's stable (Yeah, he's promoting, too) to win a world title when he captured the IBF junior middleweight belt from another former TV "Contender," Cornelius "K9" Bundrage, with a split decision Feb. 23 in Detroit.

Smith also revealed a side of Mayweather that the public doesn't see in a post-fight interview.

"There's been some really dark times in my life," said Smith. "If it wasn't for Floyd — as soon as he got out of jail he came to the gym and gave me some money and said, "take care."

Smith then went on to say Mayweather was unlike any other promoter with whom he's dealt in that he's "never asked for any of that money back and is always up front with how much money I'll receive for each fight."

After a slow start, IBF welterweigt champion Lamont Peterson (31-1-1, 16 KOs) returned to the ring and his hometown of Washington D.C. in style with an eight-round TKO win over former WBC champ Kendall Holt (28-6, 16 KOs) on ESPN2 two Fridays ago at the D.C. Armory. It was the first fight for Peterson since winning the title with a controversial decision over Amir Khan 14 months ago.

The Nonito Donaire-Guillermo Rigondeaux super bantamweight unification showdown is set for April 13 on HBO from the Radio City Music Hall in New York. ... Bernard Hopkins tries to break his own world title age record Saturday night when he takes on IBF light heavyweight champ Tavoris Cloud on HBO. ... WBC middleweight champion Sergio Martinez returns to his native Argentina to defend his title against Martin Murray of England April 27 on HBO. ... Daniel Ponce De Leon defends his WBC featherweight title against former champion Abner Mares April 20 on Showtime.

Bob Hanna covers boxing for The Standard-Times. Contact him at sports@s-t.com